


The Game

by Anonysaurus



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: M/M, The Pocky Game, but mostly jeanxmarco, side pairings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-12
Updated: 2014-02-12
Packaged: 2018-01-12 02:10:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1180668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonysaurus/pseuds/Anonysaurus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What starts out for a simple search for a chocolate treat turns into an emotional ride filled with embarrassment and misunderstanding.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Game

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this for my wonderful friend for reasons which escape me but she seemed to like it so I thought, why not. So here it is.  
> Also, this is pretty much my first (completed) fanfiction so feedback and critiques are much appreciated! ^^  
> (I'd title it something better but I lack the talent for witty titles so it is what it is I suppose *shrugs*)

                                
  
        “Hey Eren, what are you eating?” Marco asked as he entered the barracks after a long day of training. Eren and Armin were sitting on Eren’s bunk eating what appeared to be some kind of candy. “Oh this?” Eren held up the box, “it’s called ‘Pocky’, Sasha stole some from one of the higher ups” he laughed “try some, it’s like a chocolate covered cookie stick” Eren handed a piece to Marco. “This is delicious!” Marco happily ate the rest of the chocolate stick, “Um, may I have another?” he asked shyly, he didn’t want to sound greedy but it was really good. They both laughed “Sorry, but that was the last stick” Armin said, “Oh, alright” Marco tried not to sound too disappointed “but I’m pretty sure Sasha has some more, you could go ask her for a box” Eren added with a smile. “Oh great, thanks guys” Marco smiled and waved as he left to go find Sasha.  
  
          Marco ran all around looking for the potato loving girl but he couldn’t find a trace of her anywhere, “where could she possible be?” Marco asked himself as he looked around the recreation hall. He sighed and headed out the door, was this wild hunt for Sasha _really_ worth a box of chocolate? Marco thoughts were interrupted when he bumped into someone as he was leaving. “Ouch!  I swear to god Jaeger, watch where you’re going or I’m gonna kick your as- oh, hey Marco” Jean’s cold demeanor quickly melted to a warm smile, Marco blushed, he absolutely adored that smile. Ever since he met Jean, whenever he smiled like that it made his stomach do backflips. He rarely showed it though, but when he did, it always seemed to be directed at Marco; just thinking about it made Marco’s face even redder than before. “Uh hey, Earth to Marco,” Jean waved a hand in front of his face, no response. He had this sort of dazed look in his eyes and his face was so red a tomato would be jealous, and if Jean was honest with himself, it was kind of cute. Marco was just staring at him and Jean couldn’t help but stare back, his freckles were barely visible because of his blush. Jean loved his freckles, how they covered his cheeks, he wanted to count them. They continued to stare at each other, neither of them noticing how close they were until someone shouted from across the way “GET A ROOM!” They both quickly snapped out of their daze and took a few steps back, “I-I’m s-sorry” Marco apologized, looking away from Jean, he suddenly found his boots more interesting. “I-It’s ok” Jean said softly “U-Um, have you seen Sasha?” Marco asked his voice a lot more quiet now. “Oh um, no, I haven’t. But I always see her with Connie so maybe he knows?” Jean offered, now it was his turn to blush. “Thanks” Marco quickly maneuvered around Jean and went off to find Connie “See ya at dinner?” Jean called out to him and he turned “Uh, yeah” Marco called back and quickly ran off.  
  
          Marco can’t believe he just _stared_ at him! _Jean_ of all people! He had felt really embarrassed when he snapped out of it. He liked Jean, sometimes more than a friend but there was no way he could tell him that! Marco couldn’t believe how stupid he had been, just _staring_ at him like that! He mentally hit himself for being so careless. Marco sighed and then suddenly stopped; what had he been doing? Oh yeah, gotta find Connie! After a while, Marco was just about to give up when a familiar face walk by. “Connie!” Marco yelled as he nearly tackled the boy to the ground “I have been looking _everywhere_ for you!” he told the shorter boy about his fruitless hunt for Sasha “Oh shit, you must _really_ like pocky if you were willing to spend all your free time to track her down” Connie stared at him with a look of admiration. Marco just sighed “yeah, it does sound kinda silly when you say out loud huh?” he didn’t really think about it till now but, yes, it was _very_ silly to go running around looking for _one_ person who _might_ give you a small box of chocolate. “You know what, never mind,” Marco waved him off and turned to go back to the barracks, he was tired from training and now from running around trying to track down Sasha. “Awe, come on man!” Connie grabbed him arm and pulled him in the opposite direction “Don’t let today go to waste! I know where she is, so you’re gonna get your pocky!” Connie pulled him all the way to the girl’s barracks. “H-Hey, Connie? I don’t think we’re allowed in here” Marco was nervous, what if they got caught?  “Oh chill out Freckles! I come in here all the time, we’ll be fine” Connie reassured him but that didn’t calm Marco’s nerves very much. When they walked in, it was mostly empty; Mikasa was on one of the top bunks reading, Annie, who was in one of the farther bunks appeared to be asleep and Sasha was reclined in the bottom bunk under Mikasa. She looked up when she saw them enter, “Connie!” she yelled loudly, but neither of the other girls cared or took notice. “Did you get it?” she asked excitedly as they approached her bunk, “hell yeah!” Connie replied as he took a wrapped package out of his uniform jacket and handed it to Sasha. She squealed with glee as she unwrapped it, “a potato?” Marco asked, not really all that shocked but still a little surprised. Sasha looked at the steaming spud and drooled “yes” she smiled dumbly at the root in her hand and then she took a giant bite. “MMMM!” she nearly moaned “u-uh does she always make those noises when she eats?” Marco whispered to Connie, feeling a bit embarrassed, he could feel his blush coming back. “Hey Sasha, quit makin out with the food, we got company” Connie informed her and she quickly snapped out of it and turned to Marco. “Oh Hiya Freckles! Didn’t see you there” she smiled as if nothing happened, “Hello,” Marco greeted back still a little red. “So what brings you to our neck of the woods?” she asked but before Marco could answer, Connie spoke up, “He’s been running all around looking for you” he laughed “says he wants to know if you’re willing to give up a box of pocky” he teased and lightly nudged Marco in the arm. Sasha laughed as well which didn’t make Marco any better, “Oh really? And what will he give me?” Sasha stood up from her bunk and stood in front of him. “Give? I didn’t know I had to exchange anything for it. Eren said that you might still have a few extra boxes” Marco said “Oh I do, but you’re going to have to give me something” she smiled, her smile looked almost wicked but before Marco could see it, it was gone. “I-I’m sorry, I don’t have anything that you’d want” he rubbed the back of his neck nervously “Well, it sucks to be you then Freckles” she shrugged and flopped down back on her bunk and continued to snack on her potato. “Awe, come on Sasha, he trained all day _and_ ran around looking for you! The least you could do is give the man a box of candy!” Connie crossed his arms in a huff. “Yeah, don’t be a bitch Braus” a voice was heard from above, Sasha ducked from the bottom bunk and glared at the ceiling, “I am _not_ being a bitch!” she defended herself “It was really hard to get these boxes!” she flopped back down in a huff and continued to munch on her snack with an irritated face. “It’s alright, really” Marco said “you’re not a bitch Sasha, I understand” he smiled at her and thanked her anyway “See you guys at dinner” he waved and left to go catch some sleep before dinner, he was exhausted.  
  
          When Marco walked into the boy’s barracks, it was empty. “That’s odd, where is everyone? There’s usually _someone_ in here” he walked to his bunk and flopped down, it had been a long day. Just as he started to doze off, Marco heard someone enter the barracks and a strange click sound but he just dismissed it and snuggled deeper into his pillow. A few minutes later he heard footsteps approaching his bunk, “it’s probably Jean” he thought absentmindedly “Hey Marco,” a deep voice called, it sounded like Jean’s but his voice wasn’t _that_ deep. Marco turned over anyway to find Jean standing in front of their shared bunk; he was looking down at him, just staring with this weird look in his eyes. “Jean? What’s up?” Marco smiled politely at his friend, “You’re smiling” he says, ignoring the boy’s question  
“Um, yeah” Marco laughed nervously “I guess I am.”  
“I like it” Jean said as he took a step closer to the bunk, “Have I ever told you that?” Marco looks at him in shock; did he really just say he liked his smile? Blushing, Marco avoided eye contact “T-Thanks Jean. I uh like your smile too” he gave another nervous laugh. Jean didn’t say anything else; he just stood there, incredibly close to Marco’s bunk, staring down at him with that intense expression. Marco tried to go back to sleep but he couldn’t with Jean right there, “Hey J-Jean, why are you just standing there? Aren’t you tired from today?” Marco asked his friend, he was concerned for him. Jean was always doing dumb things, whether it was getting into fights with Eren or being a bit too reckless during their 3D maneuver gear practice, Marco couldn’t help but worry about him sometimes. “Yeah, I’m fucking exhausted” he replied but he still didn’t move, he didn’t mind when Jean swore, everyone did but Jean swore the most. “Then go to sleep, we still have a few hours till dinner” Marco suggested. When Jean didn’t answer or move, Marco yawned and said that if he wasn’t going to sleep then _he_ was, and turned away from Jean. After a while, Marco went to sleep thinking Jean did the same, even though he didn’t hear him move. When Marco woke up he felt unbelievable warm, he didn’t want to get out of bed he was so comfortable “hmm” he hummed, he’d never been this cozy.  
“Hmm Marco” he heard a lazy voice behind him.  
It was then that Marco felt the arms around his waist and the warm breath on his neck, “Jean!?” Marco turned his head to see his friend behind him but he quickly turned back because their faces were very close when he did. “W-What the hell?” Marco went from sleepy to completely flustered in two seconds, his face was just as red as it was before when he caught himself staring at Jean. “What’s wrong Marco?” Jean asked sounding a bit sleepy and having absolutely no problem with invading his friend’s bed. Marco didn’t know how to respond, there he was; lying in bed, just woken up from a fairly good nap, to find Jean behind him with his arms around his waist and both their legs entangled! It was just too much! “Marco” Jean’s low voice was by his ear, Marco could feel his hot breath on his skin. “You think too much Marco” He said his name again, Oh how he loved how he said his name.  
“And you worry too much too” he said as he licked the shell of Marco’s ear which made him whimper as it made a shiver shoot down his spine, Jean just chuckled and did it again but also began to suck on his earlobe. “J-Jean, p-please stop” Marco pleaded “If you _really_ wanted me to stop, you would have made me already” Jean countered and continued to leave kisses and nips all along Marco’s neck. “Mmm, you taste good” Jean whispered in his ear as he pulled the boy in impossibly closer so that he was flushed against him and he practically moaned.  
oh.  
 _oh._  
          ”J-Jean, u-um” Marco tried to get out the words but he was finding it very difficult in the current situation, “Heh sorry, Marco” he gave a low chuckle “you just smell so good I couldn’t help myself” he took a deep inhale for emphasis. “Jean I-I” it was official; he couldn’t talk at all.  “Hmm yeah, say my name” Jean started to plant more kisses and love bites on Marco’s neck and then starts to rub against him. Marco can feel his breath hitch but Jean doesn’t seem to notice.  
”Marco” he whispers in a needy tone, his voice slowly got louder.  
  
“MARCO!”  
  
          Marco woke with a start; he looked around a bit confuse about where he was. He around to find he was still in the barracks; which meant-  
Shit. It was a dream. “God _damn_ you’re a heavy sleeper!” Reiner’s deep voice caught Marco’s attention, “We’ve been trying to wake you up for the past ten fucking minutes!” he crossed his arms in annoyance. “Oh, I’m sorry” Marco apologized “Oh its ok, he’s just upset because they already started dinner” Bertholdt laughed “Yeah, its fuckin hilarious” Reiner replied “Look, I’m starving; He’s awake now so I’m leaving.” Reiner left for the door “See yeah asshats!”  
Bertholdt just laughed and apologized for his rude behavior “He’s only like that when he’s hungry” he gave a small smile “Oh no problem, Jean gets like that too” Marco said and as they made their way to the mess hall, they both laughed at how aggressive their friends could be when food was on the line.  
          “Marco!” Jean yelled from across the hall when he saw him enter and he waved his arm. Marco felt his face heat up when he heard Jean call his name, his dream slowly coming back to him. “Hehe you look like a tomato” Bertholdt chuckled “You like him don’t you?” he asked out of the blue, “What?!” Marco said louder than he meant to as he looked around to see if anyone had heard, Bertholdt just laughed again “I heard you say his name when we came in to get you” he said in a lowered voice, Marco just stared at the floor in embarrassment “Hey, its ok. I know what it’s like” Bertholdt nudged him “You gonna tell him anytime soon?” he asked “No” Marco said plainly, he didn’t really want to talk about this, especially with everyone within hearing range. He was about to go join his friends when Bertholdt stopped him “Hey, can I give you some advice?”  Marco just nodded “If you really like him, tell him. Or, if you’re more of a man of action, show him. But I wouldn’t recommend keeping it to yourself” he said “but what if-“  
“If you’re worried about your friendship,” he interrupted, “don’t, if Jean’s _really_ your friend, he’ll understand. Sure it might be a bit awkward in the beginning but he’ll get over it. But I don’t think you’ll have that problem.” He gave Marco a knowing smile “What do you mean by that?” but he didn’t answer, “HEY BERTHOLDT! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE OR I’M GONNA EAT YOUR FOOD!” Reiner shouted “Well, see you around Marco” Bertholdt smiled and went off to join Reiner and Annie at their table. Marco finally made his way to the table to join the others, “What was that about?” Armin asked as Marco came up to their table “Oh uh, Bertholdt just wanted some advice on a training exercise” he answered “Yo Marco! Saved you a seat!” Jean shoved Connie over to make room for him.  
 “Hey! Watch it horse-face!”  Connie snapped  
“The fuck did you call me baldy?” Jean grabbed Connie’s shirt and shook him roughly “Jean” Marco calmly put a hand on Jean’s shoulder as a sign to let it go, Jean let go and turned back to his food muttering something about not wanting his food to get cold and how he wasn’t worth his time. “How do you do that?” Sasha asked Marco in awe “Do what?” Marco asked innocently “You just defused the situation with one touch and saying his name!” she exclaimed in admiration “please teach me!” she begged “there nothing to teach” Marco sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck and gave a small smile. “Yeah right, you totally tamed him” Eren chimed in “piss off Jaeger! I’m not a damn horse!” Jean flipped Eren off before digging back into his food. “You’re right Jean, if you were a horse, Marco would be riding you” Connie laughed loudly. “IF I HERE ONE MORE HORSE JOKE, I SWEAR, I’LL GO APE SHIT ON ALL OF YOU! YOU’LL WISH YOU’D GET EATEN BY A TITAN!” Jean raged “so I fuckin _dare_ you! One more joke!” He gave everyone at the table a death glare before stuffing his face once more.  
He missed it. He was more focused on the dumb horse joke that he missed it, but Marco didn’t. At first he thought he had misheard Connie but no, that triumphant smile on his face when he saw that Jean missed it was proof enough. Marco look at the others and they seemed to have picked up on the innuendo too because they have knowing smiles as well, which only made Marco embarrassed as his face lit up once more. Throughout the rest of dinner Connie and Eren continued to poke fun at Jean despite his warning, it was an empty threat anyway they all knew it, and Marco chatted with Armin for a bit but he mostly tried to get Sasha off his back about ‘teaching her his ways’ “Awe come on!” she begged for the umpteenth time “I’ll make it worth your while!” she offered “Sasha what could you possibly have-“  
“Pocky”  
Marco sighed, “Sasha, I would take your offer, believe me I’m tempted, but I don’t have anything to teach you, we’re friends, that’s all it is. No tricks. No training, just friendship.” Marco told her hoping she’d get the point and drop it. She didn’t though.  
“Horse shit!” she pouted “you just don’t wanna share your secrets”  
“That’s it, I’m outta here!” Jean stood up and grabbed his food about to leave when Marco put a hand on his wrist “Calm down Jean. One, that wasn’t directed to you, two, it wasn’t even a horse joke so sit back down” he reasoned with him and Jean just grumbled as he sat back down, “No training my ass” Sasha muttered.  
  
          The next day all the trainees were called to the pavilion before training started, “What’s going on?” Eren asked as he lined up with the others “Beats me,” Armin answered “It’s probably about the candy Sasha stole” Mikasa guessed, “shit!” Sasha looked around nervously, she started to freak out “shit, shit, shit!”  “Hey calm down, don’t freak out, if they knew who took it then we wouldn’t be lining up” Armin tried to calm her down “Yeah he’s right, they have no clue” Connie wrapped a reassuring arm around Sasha’s shoulder “So just act like you don’t know what’s going on like everyone else till this all blows over” he said. “Y-yeah, just gotta act cool” she laughed nervously “it’ll be fine Sasha, don’t worry” Marco patted her on the back and smiled, “thanks Freckles.”    
  
          When everyone was lined up, Shadis appeared before the trainees. “I’m sure you’re all wondering as to why I called you here before training” his voice was naturally loud, so loud it almost boomed. “Well I would like to ask all of you something,” he cleared his throat, “WHICH ONE OF YOU NO GOOD SONS OF BITCHES STOLE FROM ME!?” he screamed.  
 Silence.  
 “Not gonna step up and admit huh?” he asked, his voice back to his normal volume “well unlucky for all of you, the military is about working together like a well-oiled machine. So if one of you goes down, you’ll all go down.” Another pause, “The thief has until the end of the day to step up and confess, after that your training will not only double but I’ll also add laps. Starting with ten laps, and for everyday the thief doesn’t confess, I’ll add another five.”  
Marco looked over at Sasha who was sweating like a pig and looking around with shifty eyes, “Now get the hell out of my sight!”  
After Shadis’s dismissal, everyone ran to Sasha “You stole from _Shadis_?!” Jean asked in a loud whisper “Yeah, what the hell were you thinking?” Eren added. “I wasn’t!” Sasha buried her head in her hands as if to hide away from everything. “You have to confess” Armin said softly, “are you nuts?” Connie interjected “he’ll eat her alive!”  
“Not to mention she already had a record of stealing.” Mikasa added  
“Ugh! Don’t remind me!” Sasha groaned “So, what are you going to do?” Marco asked gently “I don’t know maybe run away dye my hair and change my name?” she joked, the sad thing was she was only half joking. Connie was right, Shadis would feed her to the titans if he found out she stole food again but if she stayed quiet, it was only a matter of time before someone found out and ratted her out. “It’ll be alright, you have the whole day to think of something” Marco tried to reassure her “Easy for you to say Freckles, Shadis doesn’t want your head on his mantel” she snapped back. Marco didn’t know what to say, he wanted to reassure her it’d all turn out fine but if he was honest with himself, he wasn’t quite sure it would.  
  
          It was almost the end of the day, and Sasha still hadn’t confessed to Shadis. “I swear if that thieving bastard doesn’t fess up I’m gonna start looking for them on my own!” Marco over hears one of the other trainees as they did their hand to hand drills. “I bet it was that potato girl” another one says “she had the nerve to steal from the kitchens what’s stopping her from stealing from Shadis?”  
Shit, they’re going to figure it out. It’ll be twice as bad if someone turns her in. Something has to be done.  
  
          “Alright you worthless worms! It’s confession time!” Shadis yelled out into the crowd of lined up trainees. Marco looked over to where Sasha was and could see she was having a mental break down and it was tearing her apart. He hated seeing her like this, she was usually outrageously hyperactive and ditzy, not the unstable train-wreck of a girl she is now. Marco let out a deep sigh and slowly raised his hand.  
“Well I certainly wasn’t expecting _you_ “ Shadis glared at him “Freckles! Front and center!” Marco made his way to the front, he made eye contact with Jean who was staring at him wide-eyed silently asking, ‘what the _fuck_ are you doing!?’  
He stood in front of Shadis, shaking a bit. He was scared beyond all belief; he scanned the crowd for Sasha, when he found her she had the most shocked expression on her face as did most of the others. Everyone who knew Marco knew he didn’t do it so why had he said he did? Shadis looked at Marco with an unreadable expression, after what seemed like hours, he turned back to the trainees and dismissed them. “Freckles,” Marco nearly jumped out of his skin “follow me” and left without another word.  
  
          When Marco headed for the barracks he was stopped by a loud call of his name. “MARCO! OH MY GOD YOU’RE ALIVE!” Sasha tackled him to the ground hugging him and giving him a giant kiss on the cheek. “Why the hell did you do that!?” Jean spoke first, he seemed really angry, more so than usual. “You could’ve gotten kicked out! You dumbass what the fuck were you thinking!” he seethed “Dude Jean, cool out. He’s still here isn’t he?” Connie tried to calm him down but he wouldn’t listen “That doesn’t mean jack shit! For all we know he could have the worst punishment and all thanks to fuckin potato girl over here!” he pointed to Sasha and glared at her “Jean” Marco said quietly “and you!” Jean directed his anger toward Marco again, “you’re too nice sometimes you know! You should have let her confessed on her own instead of taking the fall for her! She wouldn’t have done the same for you, you know that right?!”  
“I would have!” Sasha interjected  
“That’s bullshit and we all know it!” Jean snapped back “We all saw you, if Marco hadn’t stepped up, you sure as hell wouldn’t have, and if you were planning on fessing up why the hell did you let him take the blame?!” his voice rose “You could have stepped up and taken the your punishment but no! You just sat by like a heartless bitch and let your friend take it for you! You miserable piece of shit!” Without another side glance Jean stormed off. “Sasha?” Connie placed a gentle hand on Sasha’s shoulder, “H-He’s right” she sniffed, she was on the brink of tears “I am a heartless bitch” she stared at the ground, still kneeling from tackling Marco. “No! Jean is just a huge dick!” Connie kneeled beside her and gave her a hug “No one knew Marco was going to do that,” he told her and there were several nods of agreement “Why’d you do it Marco? I mean aside from saving Sasha’s ass.” Eren asked him  
“She looked so distraught and broken, I didn’t want to see my friend like that” Marco answered simply, it was then that Sasha started so cry uncontrollably “M-Marco!” she sobbed as she broke out of Connie’s grip and flung herself on Marco once more “I-I’m so s-sorry!” she buried her face in his shirt “Hey Sasha, its ok” he patted her back “N-No its not!” she said between sobs “Stupid Jean is right! You could have gotten kicked out or worse!” “But I didn’t and surprisingly, I didn’t get any punishment either.” He admitted  
“WHAT!?” Everyone stared at him in disbelief “Shadis didn’t punish you? But you confessed!” Connie shouted “As much as I told him I did it, he didn’t believe a word I said” Marco sighed “He knows I’m covering for someone but he didn’t torture it out of me like I had expected him to” he gave out a nervous laugh. “I-I’m glad you got off the hook but I still feel like shit for letting you do that,” Sasha wiped her tears away “please Marco, let me make it up to you!” she bowed in front of him  
“Whoa, Sasha! You don’t owe me anything!” Marco held up hands “Like hell I don’t!” Sasha snapped back, she was starting to act like her old self again. Good.  
           
           Goddammit! Who does he think he is?! Thinking he can just go around saving people’s hides like that! Stupid Sasha, Stupid Marco! After Jean’s tirade he stormed off to find a quiet place to think, he came across a tree on a hill over-looking a small pond. Odd, why would this be in a military training camp? He thought about what purpose it could have here when his thoughts were interrupted. “Hey Jean” Jean looked up to see Marco standing next to him with a shy look on his face,  
Jean didn’t know if he was in a talking mood at the moment “May I join you?” he asked politely. ‘He’s acting as if nothing happened!’ That only made Jean more irritated; when he didn’t answer Marco sat down anyway, he made sure to sit a little ways away so he could give Jean some space. “Jean, I’m sorry” he said honestly “Why the hell are you apologizing to me for?” he snapped at him coldly “I don’t give two shits if you take the fall for someone else’s dumbass mistake” he crossed his arms and turned away, it was childish but who the hell cared? He was mad; he could act however the hell he wanted! Marco gave a small laugh and shook his head “What the hell’s so funny?” Jean turned back around, he had the sudden urge to smack that smile off his face “You,” he said plainly “You’re a terrible liar” he laughed again “Shut your freckled face!” Jean stood to leave but Marco pulled him right back down, “Tell me why you went off on Sasha.” He was making direct eye contact and he had a calming demeanor which normally would have made Jean spill his guts in a heartbeat, he just couldn’t deny him.  
  
But now, now was different.  
  
It was going to take a lot more than a couple bats of his eyelashes and a cute face to make him talk! “I fuckin _told_ why!” he yelled “Jean” the way he said his name; it was so calm and loving. Wait, loving? “Please tell me” he said again “dammit” Jean swore under his breath and glanced at Marco, who was patiently waiting for him to continue. He had the most caring look on his face and Jean couldn’t help but like him. Yeah, that’s right, he liked him. At first he thought it was friend love, it’s only natural to want to hang around your friends and talk to them, sometimes even the occasional friendly hug but eventually Jean started to notice that he wanted more than the occasional bro hug. He wanted to not only protect Marco but hide him away like a dragon hoards treasure and cuddle with him and never let go. But of course, he couldn’t tell him what he wanted, he wouldn’t run away screaming but it would make it awkward as hell between them if he did. “I want to know why you got upset,” Marco said, not looking at him anymore “I know we’re friends and were only acting like that because you were worried but I think it’s more than that.” He looked up at Jean silently pleading to tell him why, why did he get so upset over something like that? It’s not like they were in the field fighting titans so why? “I-I” Oh he did _not_ just fuckin stutter! Jean let out an exasperated sigh, “ugh! Fuck it!” he turned his entire body, facing Marco completely. “You wanna know why?” he snapped “because I was worried! My hair was turning grey the whole time you were gone!” He fumed, if Marco wanted to say something, he wasn’t about to let him “I can’t bear the thought of not having you with me! As fuckin cheesy as that sounds, it’s true! I literally have no idea what I’d do if you weren’t here!” “And then you go and do dumb shit like that!” Jean waves his arms in irritation “And here I thought _I_ did all the dumb shit!” he was rambling now, he knew it, but he kept on going “Really Marco, what the fuck? I thought you were supposed to be the smart one.”  
“Jean” he wanted him to look at him but he couldn’t  
“I gotta go” he tried to stand up again but Marco still had a grip on his arm, “Marco, let go” Jean gave a halfhearted tug on his arm, he was tired and embarrassed that he had let his emotions get the better of him.  
“No” Jean was about to argue when he felt himself being pulled closer, “huh?”  
“I worry about you too you know,” Marco was looking at him, his expression unchanging, “I care about you too” he admitted. Was it just him or was he getting closer? No, he was. Jean stayed frozen in Marco’s grip as he continued to lean in closer.  
 “You’re my friend Jean,” three inches apart.  
“But sometimes I wish” two inches apart.  
“That we could be” one inch apart.  
“More” he whispered, he was so close that their lips brushed.  
  
          “Marco!” Eren came up the hill, and Marco pulled back away from Jean as if he were the plague. “Y-Yes?” Marco turned toward Eren, not giving Jean so much as a sideways glance, “Oh you found Jean” He looked at Jean with a blank expression “What the fuck do you want Jaeger?” Jean growled at him “Geez, you’re _still_ mad? Marco didn’t get in any trouble so what’s the big deal?” Eren rolled his eyes in irritation “Fuck off, I’m not in the mood for your shit Jaeger” Jean fumed; Eren was about to give another retort when Marco jumped in. “Did you need me for something Eren?” Eren turned his attention back to Marco, “Oh yeah, Sasha’s looking for you, said she had something to give you.” “Alright, thank you” Marco smiled politely, Jean could see that it was a forced smile “I guess I’ll talk to you later Jean” he stood up and winked at him; Jean felt himself blush and quickly glanced at Eren, who had missed the gesture completely. As they started down the hill Jean called out “Marco! Meet me back here, we’re not done talking” and Jean could have _sworn_ Marco smirked at him “No, we’re not.”  
          “Hey Sasha,” Marco said as Eren led him back to the barracks, “Freckles! Where were you? I’ve been looking for you everywhere!” Sasha got up from her seat on Connie’s bunk. “That’s funny” Marco just had to laugh at the irony “Yeah, I guess it is” she giggled but then quickly become serious “Anyway, I have something for you!” she ran over to Connie’s bunk where her jacket was “Oh Sasha that really isn’t necessary,”  
 “Marco!” Sasha came back with a poorly wrapped package in her hands “Shut your cute freckled face, and take it” she thrusted the package in his hands. Marco sighed and unwrapped it when he saw what it was he laughed, “You were so set on trading for it but now you’re just _giving_ it to me?” he held the box of Pocky in his hand “That was _before_ you saved my ass!” she exclaimed “Marco, I cannot thank you enough! Even if I were to sacrifice myself to a titan for you, it _still_ wouldn’t be enough!” “Whoa! Hey! That’s a bit extreme don’t you think?” Marco laughed nervously, “Still,” Sasha looked down “Thank you” she said sincerely. Marco wrapped his arms around her and she returned the gesture happily, resting her head on his chest “Alright, break it up” Connie interrupted. Sasha raised her head and looked at Connie, “Oh please,” she scoffed “don’t tell me you’re _jealous_?” she smirked and hugged Marco tighter, her hands on Marco’s back slowly getting lower. Marco’s face lit up like a Christmas tree, too stunned to do anything, she turned to face Marco “you’re cute when you’re embarrassed, Freckles” she laughed and squeezed his backside, eliciting a squeak from the boy. “S-Sasha, u-um” Marco couldn’t think, one second he was hugging his totally _plutonic_ friend and the next she was feeling him up and giving him the most devious smirk! And to make matters worse she was only doing this to get a rise out of Connie, who was giving Marco the worst death glare, if looks could kill; he’d be ripped to shreds by now. Sasha didn’t seem to mind the silent death threats Connie was giving him because she lowered her head back down on Marco’s chest, after that Connie snapped “UGH! Fuck it! I’m outta here!” he shouted and stormed out of the barracks “C-Connie! W-wait!” Marco called after Connie but to no avail, he tried to go after him too but Sasha held on tight. “W-why did you do that?” If she knew he was the jealous type, why would she do something like _that_ right in front of him? “Because he’s so dense” she said simply “I know he likes me and yet he refuses to do anything about it! I tried flirting back but he’s just so dumb sometimes!” she sighed and rested her forehead on his chest “I’m sorry I brought you into my stupid boy problems, I wasn’t thinking.” “Sasha,“ Marco was about to tell her it wasn’t a big deal and that if she went now, she could catch up to Connie and talk things out but the door opened before he got the words out.  
“Marco?”  
Marco’s eyes went wide.  
Shit.  
  
          This didn’t look good at all. Anyone with eyes could see that. There Marco was; his arms still around Sasha and her hands still on his ass with her head resting on his chest, and him still blushing like an idiot. This could not end well.  
 Jean looked between the two in front of him not knowing what to say. Marco was staring at him with wide eyes but Sasha had yet to notice him. Even though Jean didn’t have words, he sure as hell had feelings, and right now, he felt like he had been played. Not even an hour had passed since their almost kiss and here he was letting Sasha, of all people, feel him up right in the middle of the barracks! He couldn’t take it anymore, he turned around and left, ignoring Marco’s plea to come back.  
          Marco struggled in Sasha’s grip, wow; she’s really strong “S-Sasha, please let go” he needed to go after Jean before things got worse. “Hmm?” she looked up as if she were in a daze, “Where you,” Marco stared at her “Where you _sleeping_?” he couldn’t believe it, she had fallen asleep on his chest! “Oh yeah, I guess I was” she laughed and let go to stretch, “You’re really comfortable Freckles” she yawned “What?” he was staring at her “Nothing,” he shook his head “Listen Sasha, I gotta go. Jean came in and saw us and he probably thinks the worst and I-“  
“You need to go get your man” she interrupted “M-My what?” Marco stuttered, “Oh come _on_! I know you like each other, everyone does” she crossed her arms and gave him a look. “W-well, I gotta go” he went to the door but Sasha grabbed his arm, “Wait! I have an idea!” She pulled Marco to one of the bunks and pushed him down, “Wait here!” and before he could protest, she ran out of the barracks. She was back before Marco could leave to go find Jean, Connie in tow. “Sasha what the hell? I’m really not in the mood for your shit!” Connie pulled his arm trying to get her to release her grip, “Connie!” she pulled him towards her “I only did it because I knew you liked me” she explained “That makes _zero_ sense!” he frowned, she wasn’t kidding when she said he was dense. “Idiot! I wanted you to make the first move!” she knocked him upside the head “Ow! Wait-“he looked at Sasha and then at Marco “you’re not-“and Marco quickly shook his head “then that means you-“ he turned back to Sasha, “yes” and she kissed him, “O-oh okay then” he was grinning like an idiot and blushing even harder. “Alright! Now that that’s settled,” she went over to Marco, who was still seated on the bunk, “May I?” she gestured to the box of Pocky still in his hands “Oh uh sure” he gave her the box which she opened and pulled a stick out. “What’s this about though Sasha, I don’t really have time for this” Marco glanced at the door “Hold your horses Freckles, we’re gonna learn a little game” she told him. Marco looked at her in disbelief; he didn’t have time for games! Jean was, who knows where now, hating his guts and he had to set things right! Sasha saw the gear moving in his head and pushed him back down as he stood up “You’re learning this game” she told him “Yeah, and whys that?” Marco snapped at her, he didn’t mean to sound so cold but he really wanted to find Jean. “Because it’ll help you and Jean” she said matter-of-factly, Marco let out a deep sigh and slouched on the bunk “whatever, just please hurry” he looked at her with a dull expression telling her that he was done arguing. Sasha took this as a victory and happily continued, “the game is called ‘The Pocky Game’ and, Connie,” she turned to him “and I will be the example” she took several steps closer and placed the pocky stick in his mouth, she then proceeded to take the other end in her mouth an began to slowly eat the candy. Connie stood there bright red but then Sasha stepped on his foot which was meant as a sign for him to start eating at his end. They both continued eating till they were a hairsbreadth away from their lips touching when Sasha grabbed Connie from the back of his head and kissed him deep for a few seconds and then pushed him away and raising her arms in triumph “and that’s how you play!” she shouted with a huge grin on her face. Connie looked somewhat dazed but he was also grinning, “So?” she turned to Marco who was a little red himself from watching their game, he wasn’t expecting that. “What do you think? Wanna play with Jean-y? I know you do” she winked at him “I-I” he was more embarrassed than anything, how could he even _think_ of asking Jean to play that with him?! “Wait, you like Jean?” the sound of Connie’s voice pulled Marco out of his thoughts and he looked at him “Uh, yeah” he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly “I swear Connie, if you make fun of him” Sasha held up her fist to complete her sentence, “No I won’t!” he held up his hands in surrender “well there’ll be teasing but not like that” he reassured her and gave a sigh of relief when she lowered her fist. “Well?” she turned now to Marco who was still sitting on the bunk, “Don’t you have a boy to chase after?” she reminded him “yes!” He shot up off the bunk, nearly hitting his head on the top bed, “Um, thanks”  
“Don’t thank me, I was the one who caused this in the first place” she pointed out,  
“True, but I don’t blame you for it” he told her “Jean was right, you’re too nice sometimes Freckles” Sasha slowly shook he head, “yeah, I know” he went in for a hug but thought better of it, instead Sasha offered him her fist which he gladly accepted as they bumped their fists together. Marco ran out of the barracks, leaving Sasha and Connie alone, “I hope he can convince him it was all a misunderstanding” Connie said “Yeah, but knowing Jean, he’s going to be a total ass and make it that much harder” Sasha added and they both laughed in agreement.  
  
          Marco looked _everywhere_ , he ran around the camp like a madman asking everyone if they had seen Jean but apparently no one had. How is that even possible?! He even checked the pond he had found him at earlier but there was no one in sight. Marco was on his second round of double checking places when he ran into Reiner and Berholdt, “whoa Marco, slow down, what’s wrong?” Bertholdt put his hand on Marco’s shoulder to steady him, “Yeah man, where’s the fire?” Reiner looked at him with some concern “I-I gotta find Jean” Marco huffed, he was starting to feel his muscles burn a little bit from running so much, “Misunderstanding. Ran off somewhere. Gotta talk” he spoke in broken sentences. “Well we haven’t seen him” Reiner said, “Yeah, sorry” Bertholdt apologized, and just then Marco lost his balance and almost hit the ground, “Whoa, that was close” Bertholdt said as he caught him. “You need some rest” he told him but Marco weakly shook his head “no, Jean,” he mumbled “gotta talk.”  
“Like hell you are, you can’t even stand on your own anymore” Reiner barked at him, taking Marco’s left arm and putting it over his shoulder so he could help hold him up.  
          When Marco woke up, he noticed he wasn’t in his bunk in the barracks. Taking in his surroundings, he saw that he was in the infirmary. How’d I get in here? He sat up and held his head in his hands as he tried to remember, I was looking for Jean, but couldn’t find him anywhere, and then I ran into Berholdt and Reiner and then- oh yeah I passed out. Marco started to get out of the bed when a nurse came in and told him to lie back down, “You suffered a minor case of dehydration and exhaustion, just get some rest, and that pitcher better be empty by the time I get back” she pointed to the nightstand next to the bed. “Oh, and you have a visitor” she added as she left, he looked up to see Jean enter the room “Hey,” he said quietly, not looking directly at Marco, “how’re you feelin’?” he glanced at him “Okay I guess,” Marco replied “Why’re you here? I thought you were mad at me?” he looked at Jean who was still standing in the doorway. “I am, I just wanted to see if you were okay” he rubbed the back of his neck and looked at the floor “which apparently you are so, bye” he turned to leave “Jean wait!” Marco called to him and he stopped but didn’t turn to face him “I have nothing to say to you Marco” he said calmly but Marco could hear the anger, “but I do” he said Jean spun around fast with a wild look in his eye “I don’t wanna hear it _Marco_ ” he spat out his name like it offended him “I don’t want to listen to your bullshit! I don’t appreciate you toying with my emotions like they’re your own personal plaything“ he said in a condescending tone.  
“Jean I-“ Marco tried to get his words out but Jean cut him off “just save it” his voice was icy toward him, he had never spoken to him like that before and it really hurt. Jean turned to leave again but Marco was going to tell him, whether he wanted to listen or not. Marco bolted out of the bed and grabbed Jean by the arm and wrenched him back in, closing the door. “Marco, what the fuck?” he grasped his arm and rubbed it “I said I didn’t want to listen to you” he said with a frown. “Well tough shit” Marco glared at him “excuse me?” Jean stared at him in shock, Marco had just sworn! No, he must have misheard. “You heard me, you’re going to sit down, shut the hell up and listen!” Marco shoved him down on the bed “Hey! Watch it- M-Marco!?” Jean made to get off the bed when Marco pushed him down again but then proceeded to climb on top of him and straddled his hips.  
“You better shut the fuck up listen, Kirschtein!” Marco grabbed the front of his shirt and wrenched him forward so he was eye level “because I’m tired of your shit!” he snarled at him and Jean just continued to stare, who was this guy, because it sure as _hell_ wasn’t Marco! “Now, what I was _trying_ to explain to you before you so fucking _rudely_ interrupted,” Marco looked down at Jean to see if he was paying attention, he was looking at him but the vacant look in his eyes gave him away and that only irritated Marco further. He wasn’t really sure _why_ he had gotten so mad at Jean, he has the right to be upset with him and not want an explanation, but something just set him over the edge and he just snapped. Now he was pinning Jean down in a _very_ compromising position, he was angry beyond comprehension and there Jean was, just watching him! “What the hell did I _just_ say?” Marco growled “M-Marco what’s gotten into you?” Jean asked, scanning his face for some kind of proof that it wasn’t the real him, “You’d never-“Marco cut him off “Never what? Do this?” he leaned in closer and rolled his hips a little, savoring the growing color in Jean’s face “red looks good on you Jean,” Marco said with a smirk and leaned in closer to his ear, “we should do this more often” he whispered and Jean gave a little gasp which caused Marco to laugh “What’s wrong _Jean-y_?” he asked, feigned a look of innocence and concern, “gettin all hot n’ bothered?”  
“M-Marco, wh-“ Jean stared up at him, he couldn’t believe what was happening right now, not that he was complaining! Jean had liked Marco for some time but he wasn’t sure if he should tell him or not, but after their almost kiss by the pond and now _this_ , Jean was starting to get the feeling that Marco felt the same way. “It’s not polite to start a sentence and not finish your thought” Marco teased him “I-I” Jean couldn’t get the words out, Marco’s personality had done a complete one-eighty, he was officially tongue tied. “What’s the matter Jean? Titan got your tongue?” Marco rolled his hips again and Jean’s eyes rolled back, he’s doing it on purpose now, that _asshole_! “Awe come on Jean, you know you can tell me anything” Marco pouted, not even trying to hide his teasing smile now. “Wha-What the hell are you on?” Jean _finally_ got a sentence out but it was a lame-ass sentence! “I’m on _you_ silly!” Marco laughed but then backed away “do you not want me to be?” his face turned serious and uncertain, acting more like himself. He couldn’t be serious. _Now_ he was doubting himself? “Marco,” Jean’s voice sounded hoarse, he cleared his throat “if I didn’t want you on me, I would’ve pushed you off by now” he told him and Marco smiled. Not one of the shit-eating grins he’s been giving him; a genuine ‘Marco smile’. Jean smiled back and grabbed him by the collar to pull him down “Now if I’m not mistaking, we had a conversation to finish” he grinned “I do believe we did” Marco grinned back and leaned in. But just then someone knocked at the door and Marco flew back off of Jean so fast Jean wondered for a second if he had really been there at all. “Marco!” Connie and Sasha ran in and tackled Marco to the floor and everyone else filed in “Are you okay?” Sasha asked him “we heard what happened!” Connie hugged him tighter “U-Um yeah, I feel fine now” Marco gave a small laugh “We just wanted to make sure you were alright” Armin smiled “Hey horse-face! Why the hell is Marco on the floor while you’re in his bed?” Eren snapped, and everyone turned to look at Jean, who was still red from before. “Sasha and Connie tackled him to the floor, Stupid!” Jean defended himself, “You were there before though weren’t you?” Reiner gave him a knowing smile. When Jean didn’t answer Connie piped up, “Oh my god! You were!” he laughed “You two were totally doin’ it!”  
“What?! No!” Jean stood up “shut your fucking face Connie!” he seethed “hey man, I’m not judging” he held up his hands still laughing “b-but, we weren’t doing anything” Marco said but the looks on everyone’s faces said they weren’t fooling anyone, both Jean and Marco were still bright red and their hair and clothes were muddled as well, either they just ran laps or something else happened. “Well come on, let’s leave these two alone” Bertholdt suggested “I think they’ve been teased enough,” he said “for now” he added with a sly smile. Everyone reluctantly agreed and left the room. Even though it was just the two of them again, the moment was gone. Now, it was quiet and a hell of a lot more awkward. Marco wouldn’t look Jean in the eye anymore; he looked extremely uncomfortable and a bit anxious. “Marco,” Jean said gently, in fear of scaring him off “I-I should go,” Marco stood up from where Sasha and Connie had tackled him, “I feel much better now.” He said, still refusing to make eye contact.  
“Marco” Jean said a little louder but Marco didn’t acknowledge him “I really am sorry about before, it was a misunderstanding that shouldn’t have happened.” He glanced at Jean and gave him a small awkward smile, but Jean could see it was forced.  
“ _Marco!_ ” Jean yelled at him now “Goddammit you are _not_ going to leave me alone again!” Marco turned to face him and saw that he had completely lost his patience and was getting mad now. “S-sorry” Marco tried to apologize but it didn’t seem to work, “Don’t fucking apologize!” he growled “What are you sorry for?” he gave him an annoyed look, Marco was about to answer when Jean cut in again “And don’t you _dare_ say it was for what just happened!”  
“I-I wasn’t going to” he replied, his voice sounded so much softer compared to Jean’s loud voice.  
 “What then?”  
“I’m sorry for not telling you I liked you sooner!” he said it so fast that Jean wasn’t sure he heard him right, he looked at him for a second, his eyes were closed tight and he looked really tense. Trying to ease the tension Jean replied “well technically, you didn’t _say_ you liked me at all” Marco became more red (as if that were possible) “W-well Bertholdt said that if I couldn’t find the words, that I should let my actions speak for me” he said shyly “but I don’t know why I did _that_!” Marco hid his face in his hands “I’m so embarrassed!” Jean couldn’t help but laugh at his behavior, he had been so confident and cocky a little while before and now he’s acting like a blushing school girl! “W-what’s so funny?” Marco peeked through his hands find Jean having a laugh attack on the bed “You!” he said between laughs “You are just too cute sometimes” he wiped a tear away from the corner of his eye “W-what?” Marco stuttered “One minute you have total control and have the sexiest look on your face and in less than a minute you change into a blushing school girl!” he starts laughing again but eventually he composes himself, “Oh man, I haven’t laughed like that since we stole all of Connie’s clothes and he came in the dining hall butt naked!” He laughed at the memory and Marco laughed too, he had never seen Connie so mad before. “Hey Marco, let’s go” Jean stood up and put an arm over his shoulder, “it should be dinner time right about now and I am _starving_ ” Marco smiled at him “yeah, me too” and they headed off to the dining hall, laughing more about the pranks they had pulled.  
          If Marco was honest, he wasn’t looking forward to dinner. After the fiasco in the infirmary, he wasn’t sure if he was ready for the teasing yet. “Hey Jean, you go in ahead, I forgot something” Marco said, trying to sound convincing, it wasn’t that he was embarrassed to be seen with Jean (a bit late for that), he just didn’t want their teasing to start as they walked in. “Bullshit” Jean looked at him with an unamused expression “Even if you were a good liar, which you’re not, I’d still be able to see right through you.” Jean studied Marco’s face and saw that he was a bit anxious “Stop worrying!” he playfully nudged him with arm “Now let’s go inside before fuckin’ Reiner eats everything” he smiled and Marco smiled back, feeling a bit better. As they walked through the doors, Marco could hear the wolf-whistles and cheers from their table. This is _exactly_ what he didn’t want to have happen! He just wanted to crawl under his covers and never come out again! “Hey,” Jean’s voice was low so that only Marco could hear it “ignore them” he sounded irritated but the fact that he said anything at all meant that he cared. They got their food and sat down at their usual table only to be greeted by more teasing and jokes. “So you guys a thing now or what?” Ymir asked, “Ymir,” Krista warned her, she was the only person that could talk to Ymir like that and not get beat up “I think they’ve had enough teasing today”. Neither of them answered though, what was their relationship? They both liked each other, or from past experiences it sure seemed that way, but neither of them had actually _talked_ about it. “I’ll take your collective silence as a yes” she ignored Krista’s warning. “Wha- No, we’re not!” Jean was the first to answer, a bit too defensively. “So what, your little thing today was to blow off steam?” she quirked an eyebrow at him, clearly seeing right through his lie. “It wasn’t like that either!” Jean fumed, Marco just sighed; he had such a short temper sometimes. “So what you were just using Marco?” Armin interjected, he looked like he was about to strangle Jean from across the table “What the fuck?! NO!” Jean was ignoring Armin’s glares and was getting angry himself “Armin” Marco pulled his attention away “It wasn’t like that,” Marco’s voice was calm and reassuring “No one took advantage of anyone” he said and then he looked at Jean silently adding ‘I hope not’. “So then, what exactly was it?” Eren asked “I don’t think it’s any of your fucking business Jaeger!” Jean snapped at him “it’s _none_ of your business” he pointed to everyone at the table “so just leave Marco and me the fuck alone!” he took one last heaping bite of his food and then stormed out of the mess hall. “I’m sorry” Marco felt the need to apologize for Jean, even though he was normally snappy with everyone, this time was a bit different. “You don’t have to apologize for jack-shit” Reiner told him before continuing eating “Both you and Jean have the right to be upset, we _did_ kind of go overboard with the teasing” Bertholdt smiled apologetically. “Yeah, it isn’t your fault that Jean can’t take the teasing” Connie laughed “ _Please!_ Neither can you” Sasha scoffed with a mouthful of food. “I totally can!” Connie pouted.  
 “What was that _baldy_?” she asked innocently  
“I said-“  
“Oh, there you are! I didn’t see you there, you’re just so short” she continued her innocent act.  
“Hey, you’re not very tall either!” Connie was starting to lose his patience,  
“Oh no! Connie? Where’d you go?” Sasha looked around the table, looking worried, she even pushed Connie over to look around him, and the whole table laughed as Connie lost it. “FUCK YOU SASHA!” he yelled but Sasha just smiled and grabbed his collar, pulling him into a kiss. “Maybe later” she winked at him and then continued on eating, leaving Connie confused and dumbfounded. “Can you not do that here? I’m eating” Reiner complained, “You have no right to ask that” Sasha turned her attention to the blonde across from her, “Excuse you?” he looked like he was ready to start a fight “Reiner,” Bertholdt put a hand on his shoulder trying to calm him down, his temper was just about as short as Jean’s some times. “I’ve heard you and Bertholdt, you two sneak out a lot,” Sasha continued, disregarding Reiner’s death glares, “and I gotta say Bertie,” she turned to Bertholdt who was sitting next to Reiner, “I didn’t know you could be so loud.” Reiner looked away from Sasha when he didn’t feel Bertholdt’s hand anymore, Bertholdt had buried his head in his hands out of sheer embarrassment; he was blushing so much that it spread to his ears. Reiner just about leaped over the table to get to Sasha, he didn’t care if she was a girl or not, she not only made Bertholdt uncomfortable but also said things that were better left unsaid, and for that, she had to go down. He would have done it too, if Eren, Mikasa, and Marco hadn’t held him back. “Connie! Get her out of here!” Armin told him as he joined in when he saw they were having trouble holding Reiner back, Connie grabbed Sasha’s hand and left without having to be told twice.  
  
          It took some convincing, but eventually Reiner calmed down enough for everyone to let go. “Hey,” Reiner put a hand on Bertholdt’s shoulder “you okay?” his voice was gentle; Bertholdt shook his head, still hiding in his hands. “Come on Bertl, you can’t be _that_ upset, they were gonna find out eventually” Reiner slowly moved his hands away from his face, Bertholdt looked up at him, his face was beat red. “I-I didn’t want them to know _t-that_!” he tried to hide again but Reiner held on to his hands, trying to calm him down, “Hey, no one cares” he said “no one’s gonna think different of you” he reassured him, Bertholdt looked around Reiner to look at everyone else as if he were confirming what Reiner was saying was true, everyone nodded in agreement. “Come on,” Reiner stood up and Bertholdt followed, he put his arm around his shoulder and Bertholdt put his arm around his waist. He was still embarrassed about everyone knowing but he didn’t move his arm away. “Have fun, but not too much fun!” Eren called after them as they left the table “Ha ha! Good one Jaeger! You’ll pay for that one later” Reiner flipped him off and left the hall, Bertholdt in tow. “Was that really necessary Eren?” Armin asked “Probably not” he shrugged nonchalantly “Were you planning on going after Jean anytime soon?” Mikasa asked plainly, it took Marco a second to register that she was talking to him, “O-oh,” Shit, she was right, Jean had stormed out again. Marco had gotten distracted by everyone else’s drama that he had almost forgotten.  
Scratch that.  
He _had_ forgotten.  
He hoped Jean wasn’t waiting for him. “Yeah, see you guys” Marco ran out of the hall, great now he had to start his Jean search all over again! Unless.  
  
          “There you are” Marco smiled as he walked up the small hill to see Jean sitting at the top. “Hey” he greeted him quietly; Marco sat down next to him and looked out at the pond.  
“So,”  
“So” Jean was also looking at the water, probably to avoid making eye contact.  
“We should probably talk” Marco turned to look at Jean, who kept looking forward, “about what?” he asked, he knew exactly what Marco was referring to, he just wanted to prolong whatever was coming for as long as he could. “Don’t play dumb!” Marco smacked him on the arm; that caused Jean to finally look at him “I’m talking about what happened here earlier, what happened in the infirmary!” Marco smacked him again. “Ow Marco, what the hell” Jean rubbed his arm, Marco could hit hard when he wanted to. “That was for making me say it. I’m just as embarrassed as you when it comes to talking about it so let’s just suck it up and get it over with.” Marco looked down at ground and started picking at the grass. Jean let out a big sigh, Marco was right; they needed to talk about earlier. Jean wanted to but, he didn’t know where to start. “Alright, but how?” Jean asked, Marco thought for a moment. Jean watched as Marco chewed on his lip, Jean noticed that he always did that when he thought about something. Whether it be about battle strategies or what he wanted for lunch, Jean couldn’t help but think it was hot. “Well,” Marco finally said “one of us could start with how we felt about the whole thing?” he suggested “Jean?” Jean shook his head; he had been staring at Marco. Again. “Oh uh, yeah that’ll work” they both looked at each other for a moment, neither of them saying a word “I don’t think this is going to work” Marco sighed “Neither of us is going to go first.” After another moment of silence Marco stood up, “I have an idea, I’ll be right back” and without giving an explanation, he ran off.  
  
          Jean wanted to say that he would go first but he’d be lying, truth was; he didn’t want to talk about what had happened at all. He was worried, about what, he didn’t know. Marco had been the one to initiate both intimate moments so he _must_ have _some_ interest in him! If that’s the case, then why the hell can’t he tell him he feels the same way!? Jean knew he was being stupid and over thinking things but his friendship with Marco was just _too_ important to him; he really didn’t want to fuck it up. Wow, Marco really needed to hurry the fuck up because leaving him to his own thoughts right now is _not_ the best thing to do! Jean was just about to get up and go looking for him when he saw his freckled friend running up the hill with a small box in his hand. “Whoa, slow down man, breathe” Jean said as Marco stopped in front of him, panting heavily. “I-“ he continued to pant until he slowly caught his breath as he waited for Jean to answer. ‘His cheeks are red’ Jean thought How can this guy look cute and incredibly hot at the same time!?’ he continued to stare till Marco waved his hand in front of his face “Oh yeah, uh, what’d you have in mind?” Jean looked at the box in Marco’s hand, “Is that the stuff Sasha stole from Shadis?” he raised his eyebrows “Um yeah” he said shyly “She gave me a box as a thank you.”  
“So, what is it? What was _so_ important that she had to steal and you had to cover for her?” Jean looked at Marco expectantly but Marco just rubbed the back of his neck and avoided his eyes, “Marco” Jean said in a warning tone “Look. It doesn’t matter if it’s worth anything or not” Marco said “I wouldn’t change what I did and you just need to accept that.” He looked at Jean with a stubborn expression. “Alright, alright” Jean folded his arms against his chest “but really, what’s in the box?” Marco opened the box and pulled out a piece “it’s like a chocolate covered cookie” he offered the piece to Jean, who took it and munched on it a little “this is really good” he smiled and ate the rest in few bites. “But what’s it got to do with this” he motioned to Marco and himself but Marco knew he meant their whole situation “I was getting to that,” Marco cleared his throat and looked directly at Jean “I was thinking that if we didn’t have the words, then maybe we could let our actions talk for us?” he meant to say all of that while looking at Jean but somewhere in the middle Marco looked away “If you want to do that?” he added his voice now, quiet and unsure. “Um, if you want to, it’d probably work better than us waiting for the other to talk” he gave a laugh to try and lighten the mood; Marco was acting all nervous, well more nervous than he was before. “O-okay” Marco pulled out another stick and instead of handing it to Jean; he placed it in his mouth. “Marco?” Jean’s voice was slightly muffled by the candy but he still managed to talk “This is a game Sasha taught me, you don’t have to play, I just thought” he trailed off looking embarrassed “Let’s play” Jean stood there for a moment then asked, “how do you play?” Marco gave a small laugh and stepped closer “like this” and he took the other end of the stick in his mouth and began eating his end slowly, his eyes closed. All Jean could think was ‘holy shit! Holy shit! hOLY _SHIT!_ ’’ Marco opened one eye and saw Jean was mentally freaking out; he made eye contact and silently told him to eat his end. Jean took a hesitant bite. That was enough for Marco because he closed his eye and continued eating. He was almost halfway now, ‘is he gonna go all the way? What hell kinda game is this?’ Jean thought to himself but he knew, it was a either a couples game or a game of chicken and Jean knew (if that day’s experiences where anything to go from) that Marco wasn’t playing chicken. And Jean he didn’t exactly hate the idea of it either. That in mind; he ate a little faster. Now their lips were inches away, Jean silently prayed for no interruptions this time and apparently Marco didn’t want to be disturbed either because in that moment, he wrapped his hand around the back of Jean’s neck and pulled him forward, bringing their lips together.  
  
          At first, the kiss was innocent enough, neither of them really knowing what to do but trying their best, but as they started to get the hang of it, it got more and more heated. Marco continued down Jean’s neck, leaving a trail of kisses and small bites, he eventually made his way back up to Jean’s ear “mm Jean, you have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that” he whispered and then started to nibble on the shell of his ear. “M-Marco” There it was. He did it again! He managed to go from unsure shy guy to seductive minx in nothing flat! And oh how he loved it! “Yes, what is it _Jean_?” he purred, the way he said his name made Jean’s heart beat faster “s-say it again” it sounded more like a request than anything, “do you like the way I say your name _Jean_?” he said it again and this time he lowered his hands so that they were on his ass, which caused Jean to gasp. “You were jealous weren’t you _Jean_? Of Sasha I mean,” he grinned at him “you wanted to be in her position didn’t you, _Jean_?” he squeezed his ass, eliciting a small moan from Jean. “Come on, _Jean_ you can tell me” Marco resumed leaving kisses and love bites on Jean throat, he left his hands where they were, giving him the occasional squeeze. Jean couldn’t think anymore, he was officially brain dead. Here he thought what happened in the infirmary was absolute heaven but Marco just loved to prove him wrong. “You know _Jean,_ how this whole heavy petting thing works is that I touch you and you touch me back. But so far, I’ve yet to feel one hand” Marco pouted “what do I have to do _Jean_ ,” he pulled Jean closer so they were flushed against one another, “to get you to touch me?” he whispered, Jean could feel his hot breath on his face.  
  
I repeat; brain dead.  
  
          Marco wasn’t sure if it was the heat of the moment or his raging hormones but one thing was for sure, he wasn’t acting like himself. He knew that, and yet, seeing Jean like this, completely red, eyes darker and half-lidded, and the faces he made; oh man. “I thought you liked me _Jean_ , why else would you have let me do all those things to you” Marco pouted again, “I-I” Jean tried to get the words out but the way Marco was acting just made him stupid! “You seem to be at a loss for words,” he observed “let’s put that mouth to better use” he pulled their lips together again but this time, Jean was ready, he felt Marco smile as he took control of the kiss. The kiss, although heated, didn’t last very long. Marco was the first to break away for air; he leaned his forehead against Jean’s and looked at him.  
“I like your eyes” he said, his tone had a dreamy air to it.  
“I like your freckles” Jean said back, and Marco laughed “it seems everyone does” he laughed again. “Yeah, but I want to count them,” Jean moved his head to the side of Marco’s “to kiss them” and to show that he wasn’t kidding, he kissed his cheeks, one for each freckle. “Ha ha Jean, s-stop ha” Marco was squirming a little and laughing, Jean pulled back to look at Marco, “Are you ticklish?” It was a rhetorical question; Marco knew that whatever he said wouldn’t change his fate. Once he saw that smirk on Jean’s face, he knew it was over, but that didn’t stop him from trying to. “J-Jean, I know what you’re t-thinking, stop it” Marco pleaded, he tried to pull away but Jean wrapped his arms around his waist, he knew he was strong but damn! He could barely move! “I have _no_ idea what you’re talking about _Marco_ ,” Jean said his name like Marco had been saying his, “I just asked a personal question. Where’s the harm in that?” he gave Marco a wicked smile. Marco was about to object when, without warning, it began.  
  
          All Marco could do was constantly tell himself to breath while Jean mercilessly tickled his sides. He had fallen to the ground and Jean had followed, not once stopping his tickle torture. “What’s wrong Marco? You seem to be upset about something” Jean laughed as Marco glared at him but it didn’t have its desired effect with all his forced laughter. “I-I sw-wear ha ha! J-Jean! Y-you’ll ha ha pay for t-this aha ha ha!” Marco could feel tears running down his face and his lungs felt like they were on fire “P-please! Ha ha I c-can’t breathe!” he pleaded, seeing how red Marco’s face was and the tears in his eyes, Jean finally let up so he could catch his breath. When he finally did, they didn’t move from their spot on the ground. They remained tanged together; they pressed their foreheads together again and stared at each other.  
“Hey Marco,”  
“Hm?”  
“I love you”  
“I love you too Jean.” 


End file.
